Sovetsky Sport. August 31, 1974. Vilnius (our special correspondents). The USSR Cup in gymnastics for women's teams was won by the athletes from Belarus O. Korbut, A. Koshel, L. Savina, L. Gorbik, S. Kudinova, and N. Fedotova. The second and third places were taken by the RSFSR and Moscow teams. In the indiviual standings before the all-around final, Lyudmila Turischeva is ahead of Olga Korbut by 0.15 points.
Three times that day the leaders changed places. And three times everything was decided when one of the leaders, going to the apparatus, already knew the other's score. These were seconds, it seemed, of inhuman tension for Turischeva, who is only on her way to a better shape, and for Korbut, who seems to be tingling - with every muscle, every nerve, every vein.
As you recall, there was a draw between them the day before. Then, Korbut got 9.5 on vault, and Turischeva got 9.55 on the uneven bars. She wasn't happy with the score, but it was enough to take the lead. After that, Korbut flashed on the uneven bars, and Turischeva walked toward the beam, knowing that Olga had the highest score of the day - 9.8. For a long time she had not made such a serious mistake here, moreover on a difficult but traditional turn. 9.35.
Now the floor exercise is coming up. Lyudmila is standing next to us. Coach V. Rastorotsky says something to her in a low voide, and on her wide black-browed face is that stone immobility that means maximum strong-willed efforts. We also saw how much effort it was for her to smile on the carpet. 9.65. Now Korbut is preparing to attack the beam, keeping these numbers in her brain.
She started perfectly, but suddenly, when performing a novelty, first made public at the national championship (a 'rubber' stand with a steep bend) there's a hitch. Her body bends forward, then back, again forward and back... While the experts in the stands were arguing whether she had performed the backbend once or twice, and how much to deduct for this serious error, the scoreboard lights up. 8.95, and the announcer says that a special requirement was not met in the exercise - there was no 360-degree turn.
The Belarussian coaches run to protest, although they aren't sure whether there was a full turn or not, but they are convinced that Korbut could not have made such a mistake. But Olga herself said: "I was afraid that I would not do the backbend, and I simply forgot about the turn."
Turischeva is ahead by 0.3, and she finished on vault. A twist - 9.4. It looks like she can relax. But she is a courageous fighter, and she puts everything at stake. She holds up a sign with the number "24." This is the number of the Tsukahara vault that she recently learned. She vaults and improves her score by 0.05.
Korbut goes to the carpet. She tries her best, but 9.6 is not enough to close the gap. However, this gap, divided in half before the final, is microscopic.
It remains to add that Nelli Kim, who had bad luck on the first day, showed her iron character today and entered the top six with a series of scores from 9.4 to 9.6. Lida Gorbik, after an incomprehensible and inexplicable mistake on the uneven bars, jumped off the top pole and fell far back in the standings.
TECHNICAL RESULTS
USSR Cup in gymnastics. Vilnius, 29 August. Women. Individual standings. Sum of the compulsory and optional programs. Optional scores are in brackets. 1. Turischeva (RSFSR) - 75.9 (9.45, 9.55, 9.35, 9.65); 2. Korbut (BLR) - 75.75 (9.5, 9.8, 8.95, 9.6); 3. Saadi (MOS) - 75.3 (9.3, 9.45, 9.6, 9.75) and Sikharulidze (GEO) - 75.34 (9.25, 9.5, 9.55, 9.6); 5. Grozdova (RSFSR) and Kim (KAZ) - 74.95. Team results. 1. Belorussia - 374.85; 2. RSFSR 1 - 371.2; 3. Moscow - 367.3.
Overall team standings of the USSR Cup:1. RSFSR- 926.9; 2. Belorussia - 936.35; 3. Moscow - 915.85
V. GOLUBEV and S. TOKAREV